COP22: HRH Princess Lalla Hasnaa Chairs Opening Ceremony of Education Day

Marrakech – HRH Princess Lalla Hasnaa, President of the Mohammed VI Foundation for Environmental Protection, chaired, on Monday in Marrakech, the opening ceremony of Education Day, organized as part of the 22nd Conference of the Parties (COP 22) to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).

“Article 12 of the Paris Agreement confirms the importance of education, training and awareness-raising in the fight against climate change,” said Her Royal Highness in a speech at this high-level meeting, held under the theme: “Education for sustainable development – key element to develop action in favor of climate”.

“It is our duty, here in Marrakech, to work together to develop and improve environmental education, particularly with regard to climate,” said HRH Princess Lalla Hasnaa, noting that, in Morocco, the National Charter for Environment and Sustainable Development, drawn up at the behest of HM King Mohammed VI, stipulates that environmental protection should be an integral part of higher and vocational education curricula.

Her Royal Highness recalled, on this occasion, that “the Mohammed VI Foundation for the Protection of the Environment has established a partnership with the ministry of national education to raise young generations’ environmental awareness.”

At the same time, awareness-raising programs targeting adult populations have been set up by the Foundation, said HRH Princess Lalla Hasnaa, giving the example of the “Qualit’Air” program, which helps businesses reduce greenhouse gas emissions generated by their activities or compensate for them by installing renewable energy in rural schools and planting trees.

“With the support of our international partners (UNESCO, ISESCO, UNEP, FAO and IUCN), the Foundation has been closely involved in the presentation of “climate plans” for Morocco’s 12 regions. Each “Climate Plan” includes a section dedicated to education and training, which will facilitate their successful implementation,” Her Royal Highness underlined.

Locally elected officials will have to comprehend the challenges specific to their region and take appropriate measures to address them, HRH concluded.

The ceremony was marked by the young reporters’ call themed “We are for COP22, We act for Climate”, and the launch of a guidance document on climate empowerment “Accelerating Solutions via Education, Training and Public Awareness-Raising”.

On this occasion, the Executive Secretary of the UNFCCC Patricia Espinosa, and Director-General of UNESCO Irina Bokova handed Her Royal Highness the first global education monitoring report (GEM-Planet Report 2016).

Following this ceremony, HRH visited the stand of the Mohammed VI Foundation for Environment Protection in the COP22 Blue Zone.

The Education Day opening ceremony was attended by national education and vocational training minister Rachid Benmokhtar Benabdallah.